#mostly sdr because

[fuckitpossumorb]

Someone ask me about my vaguely angsty ideas that don’t have enough substance to actually become long ramble posts or fics please I’m begging

[starqueensthings]

Hi pals!

I’ll still be travelling when you’re seeing this and haven’t watched the finale, so I don’t have any new content to share, but last week (maybe longer? I don’t know— rainforest brain lol) I posted a poll asking if anyone was interested in seeing a snippet of my editing process, so here it is feat. possibly one of my favourite Wrecker moments.

I use a myriad of different software depending on: my mood, what computer/tablet I’m using, what the image looks like, and how much energy I’m willing to put into it lol In this video, I’m using Lightroom on my iPad.

The three main factors I look mostly closely at when I’m editing shots are 1. lighting, 2. noise, and 3. resolution (read: clarity).

This image required pretty minimal work so it’s probably not the best example, but ah well. The process in the above video is as follows, and please note the video had been sped up to 2x for file size reasons lol

The first thing I’ll do is see what the auto edit function defaults to. Often times it overexposes the image, resulting in significant colour noise, but it gives me a decent idea of what I should expect in terms of colour corrections and exposure mapping. The auto edit function wasn’t terrible in this case, but did produce some colour noise, mainly on Wrecker’s chest plate, his sleeves, and the officers hat. Once I’m done the initial scope out, I’ll exposure the image as high as possible to crop it— usually with the subject being as centered as possible.

This software lets the user tweak the bones of the image individually in three ways, all of them very quickly demonstrated here. The first is the curve method which I despise and NEVER use— because it alters multiple aspects at once, I don’t feel like I have the same degree of control as the other methods. Next is HDR setting (the default upon import) using the sliders on the right. This is effective for images that are already pretty well lit, and does give me a little more control, but most of the time because the screenshots are so dark, I’m editing in SDR mode.

Once I’m satisfied with the exposure/lighting, I’ll move on to correcting colour distortion and saturating the image. This software also provides three methods for colour alternation and I’ll typically use all three in conjunction with each other. Colour mixing is extremely crucial when it comes to reducing odour noise and distortion. Because this software lets me isolate certain colours to adjust their hue, saturation, and luminance, I can typically reduce most of or all of the colour noise. However, it does have its limitations. In this particular post, desaturating the colour noise in Crosshair’s rifle coincided with blanching his skin tone, because this software does not let me isolate certain areas of an image. It was also important to me to emphasize the warm tones from the sunset in the background for the overall mood of the shot, so I opted to remove what colour noise I could and leave the rest. (You can’t win em all… especially when the starting image is near-black lol)

Correcting the colour distortion in this image was not particularly difficult, desaturating all purple tones removed the noise from his chest plate, and shifting green tones to something near a yellow instead removed the noise from his sleeve. I didn’t notice the colour noise on the officers hat until a little later, but that was pretty easily corrected too.

Once I’ve fixed the colour noise, I’ll shift to toning the overall image. Wrecker particularly looks good in cool tones, but It’s nice to contrast a cool tone background with the warmth of his skin.

Once the toning is done, I’ll move on the image clarity. I don’t have the means to alter the actual resolution of the image, but I’m particularly picky with balancing texture and clarity. Wrecker always looks the best with texture and clarity increased, because it brings out the scarring on his face and further humanizes him, but overdoing the texture can also emphasize pixelation. Once that’s done, I’ll reduce the overall noise only slightly (doing too much makes them look airbrushed and unnatural), and whatever is left of the colour noise (too much of this setting makes them look like ghouls LOL)

This software also offers a series of preset alterations/filters briefly shown in this video… but I’m not the biggest fan of any of them. I’m a bit of a control freak and would rather tweak each aspect individually to the degree that I like, instead blanketing the image with present modifications and then undoing certain aspects.

Before exporting the image I’ll do another once over and make sure I’m happy! In this case, I opted to go back in and add some darker tones back into the image. I don’t do this often, particularly when they start so damn dark, but I wanted to keep the focus centrally on Wrecker’s radiance lol

That’s about it. If I’m working on multiple edits in a set, this software lets me just copy and paste the settings, so the following images only require extremely light tweaks and take almost no time. And that, I’ll export, autograph, and upload!

Thank you for attending this unprofessional Ted Talk.

[r-mooshroomi]

Should probs introduce myself as an artist.. *Hi there! I'm Mooshroomi but feel free to call me Moosh or Shroomi

*I use she/her pronouns *How old am I? Adult. *I play D&D, mostly running at the moment *#1 enjoy sprite *Professional at procrastinating ( putting off work due tomorrow) *I use this blog to post my art and to share just random ideas that pop into my head that connect music and a character *Feel free to send an ask about anything! I don't bite ( or maybe I do) *I love LoA ( OUaW, SDR, IB, Uprooted, Edge of Midnight), NSR, music, writing, art, and ninjago ( season 5 is my fave) *Feel free to send doodle requests *Mainly Legends of Avantris art atm because it's my current favorite interest * Affiliate and racer for BugRacer Corp *My drawing list is too long right now.... I need to stop having ideas *My sona? A horned, brunette with purple fade haired, shades wearing, short, and flowery demon *Why I draw? Why not.

[govindhtech]

HP Omen 27qs 240 Hz Gaming Monitor: Great Value & Results

Two gaming monitor value options exist. Some low-cost displays sacrifice features. The second kind sacrifices nothing and delivers 98% of premium screen performance for 30% of the cost. That category has many 27-inch QHD panels.

HP’s Omen display series offers good gaming performance, accurate and saturated color, and sturdy build quality for the price. My test product is the 27qs, a sweet spot product. The 27-inch IPS QHD monitor has 240 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR, and wide gamut. Let’s look.

The Omen 27qs has a QHD (2560×1440) IPS panel. Ideal pixel density is 109ppi. It’s ideal because it produces sharp images with less processing than 4K’s 8.3 million pixels.

HP’s Adaptive-Sync and front-mounted G-Sync badge indicate Nvidia certification for premium video processing. You also get an effective backlight strobe (MPRT), that almost eliminates the phasing artifact on many other monitors. It’s a good alternative to Adaptive-Sync and works up to 240 Hz on the Omen 27qs. Multiple artifact-free options and smooth motion resolution make the overdrive well-implemented.

Very accurate color and a wide gamut mode that covers 90% of DCI-P3 ensure picture quality. VESA DisplayHDR 400 supports HDR10. My tests showed over 500 nits peak with a nice bump from 9,000:1 thanks to eight-zone edge dimming.

Standard gaming features include aiming points, timers, frame rate counters, and alignment marks. An LED ring in the back plays different colors and effects for light shows. HP’s sturdy chassis is built for long-term use.

Accessories and Assembly

HP Omen 27qs packaging is mostly plastic-free and foam-free. A few Teflon bits prevent scratching on molded cardboard pulp. A captive bolt connects the base and upright, and the panel snaps on. Fasteners and a 100mm VESA pattern are protected by a plastic shroud. The bundle includes high-quality USB and DisplayPort cables and IEC power for the internal supply. A metal VESA mount adapter is included.

No sharp corners or molded trim lines define the Omen 27qs’s sleek design. The white Omen logo is the only decoration on the front. An oversized version with a smooth taper is on the back. HP’s diamond motif appears on the LED ring, square base, and tiny white power LED.

The minimalist stand is sturdy enough to prevent wobbling. Ergonomics include 3.9-inch height adjustment and 5/20-degree tilt. Despite not swiveling, the base pivots as a unit on the desktop, allowing for unlimited swivel adjustment. Also included is a 90-degree portrait mode. Using a snap-on clip keeps cables tidy.

The usual up-and-under input panel has two HDMI 2.0 and one DisplayPort 1.4. The latter supports 55-240 Hz FreeSync and G-Sync. USB 3.2 has one upstream and two downstream ports. Plug headphones into the 3.5mm jack or use the three-watt internal speakers, which sound better than most. Their frequency range is wide and they play loudly without distortion.

OSD Features

The HP Omen 27qs uses nav pad keys with four directionals and a central selector instead of a joystick. Separate button toggles power. A quick menu opens with any key press, and the full OSD appears with a second select button press.

The Omen 27qs OSD has another diamond in the top left corner. Gaming has all video processing options. You get a five-level overdrive without trail artifacts until level four. MPRT, the backlight strobe, has five pulse widths. High settings reduce blur but reduce light output. Four was my test level. Level five is dark and best used in a dark room. Aiming point, frame rate indicator, and timer are available.

The rear LED ring can play three moving effects or be static. Variable breathing speed, and Random Color changes hue every five seconds to an hour. You can also turn off or adjust all effects’ brightness over 10 steps.

In the Image menu, you can enable dynamic contrast for SDR content that uses field dimming to reach 5,000:1. In HDR mode, the screen’s bottom backlight array dims eight vertical zones.

HP’s picture modes are unique and thoughtful. All eight Omen 27qs presets can be calibrated with RGB sliders. A gamma control is the only thing missing. Standard is the default and nearly matches the sRGB gamut, 2.2 gamma, and 6500K color temp. Native provides wide gamut SDR color. It needs calibration but looks great afterward.

The Audio menu has Voice, Music, and Video modes. Each is unique and favors different frequencies. You can assign the four directional buttons to quickly access color mode, brightness, and more in the Menu section.

HP Omen 27qs Calibration

To use sRGB color for SDR content, leave the Omen 27qs in Standard mode. No calibration or adjustments are needed. It matches grayscale, gamma, and color. Choose Native for SDR wide gamut color. It needs tweaking due to its slight blue tint. Auto-switching HDR signals gray out all picture controls. Its edge zone dimming and color accuracy give it over 9,000:1 contrast.

Game and Hands-on

The best thing about 27-inch QHD gaming monitors is that they do everything well yet are affordable. You can increase resolution by buying a more expensive display and video card and sacrificing frame rates. Higher speed requires sacrificing pixel density and paying more for 360 or 500 Hz.

It was ideal for a single daily monitor. Though measured average color gamut volume, high accuracy made using the wide gamut for SDR enjoyable. The pixel-free image is sharp. A density of 109ppi delivers most of Ultra HD’s clarity and allows higher gaming frame rates.

Doom Eternal was hard to leave due to the Omen 27qs’ premium feel and response. Virtually no input lag and super-fast panel response. Overdrive was perfectly tuned to eliminate motion blur. We could use the backlight strobe instead of Adaptive-Sync without penalty. A GeForce RTX 4090 video card locked frame rates at 240fps, preventing tearing. MPRT works without obvious phasing. Level 3 balanced light output and motion resolution. To offset narrow pulse widths, overhead brightness is ample.

Audio quality from the Omen 27qs impressed me. This is exceptionally clear and full. Quality op-amps allowed me to crank the volume past a comfortable level without distortion

Takeaway: The Omen 27qs offers great value with premium gaming and everyday usability. Its vibrant image is perfect for work or play. It can satisfy casual and professional gamers with its excellent video processing and low input lag.

Read more on Govindhtech.com

[fuckterfs-deactivated20221212]

well, usually I complain about them but you gotta know that that's complaining on a very high level. like we're used to hourly trains to anywhere (not just at midnight /ref) and by that I mean anywhere. I could decide I wanna be in literally any city in my country, take a few trains that are included in my current ticket subscription, and be there before lunch tomorrow. My partner lives a few cities over and I can either take a train directly there, or if that one doesn't go I can take one of like four different hourly trains to the city next to it and then take a tram/subway type thing to get there. This is an insane level of normalized free movement without a car, and I am glad we have it.

With such a big and interconnected web of rails that it is not only a viable but also popular alternative for the german autobahn for work commutes there come a lot of issues. Upkeep and expansion of the network cause parts of the net to be closed off for months at a time, causing cancelations and delays in a sort of snowball effect that stretch far.

One of the biggest methods to prevent delays has a pretty big downside: if a train is like half an hour to an hour late the last couple stops might get canceled, so that the train turns around earlier and is no longer late on the way back, but at the cost that literally everyone who wanted to go to one of the 1-5 stops that were canceled hates the Deutsche Bundesbahn (german national rail) now. Add to that the fact that every single train needs a conductor who needs a fair wage and humane work hours, along with the fact that the DB is of course a profit-oriented corporation, you'll get strikes every two years for many weeks, and usually twice because the conductors and the other staff are mostly split among two different unions who have separate contracts, and the really fun fact that very little of the entire operation is automated, and what you get is a thing that would be impressive if it worked, but is usually complained about more than the government.

Also since the german mobile data network is full of holes you can't even reliably watch shows or youtube on the train without it buffering most of the time, adding even more frustration.

TL;DR: its potential is really high and sometimes it works awesomely, but most of the time it's a mismanaged, despised behemoth of a mess that's (the trains themselves aside) almost exclusively 20th century technology

STL;SDR: could good but meh

so excited, my union is doing warning strikes on guy fawkes' day

[zvaigzdelasas]

When Kémi Séba, a leading anti-colonial figure in Francophone Africa, last attempted to travel from his native Benin to Mali in January 2020 he was prevented from boarding the plane by Malian authorities.

At the time, Mali was under the control of president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta—a close ally to France who would not have welcomed Séba’s ability to lead large protests against the country’s former colonial ruler.

Two years later and Séba tells Quartz that he was personally invited to Mali by local authorities led by Colonel Assimi Goïta, the head of a military junta that seized power in August 2020, to give a rousing speech against neo-colonialism in the capital city of Bamako.

“The Malian authorities regard me as an ally because they know that I have reignited Pan-Africanism in Francophone African countries,” said Séba who was kicked out of Senegal in 2017 after the government called him a “threat to public order.” [...]

While the international community and the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) have denounced the military takeover in Mali, he praises the armed forces for responding to growing discontent with the former government

“The alliance between civil society and the military forces is a patriotic path forward and it will be the beginning of a new era in Africa,” he said.

“Democracy in the western sense has failed. Mali for me is proof that something can be different.” [...]

A recent poll by the [french-speaking] Friedrich Ebert foundation found that 68% of Malians are very satisfied with the coup, 27% are satisfied and only 5% do not support the military [...]

The question now is whether anti-colonial populist governments with broad support from their citizens will become a trend that spreads to other parts of Africa.

Séba believes that it is currently mostly isolated to Francophone Africa where it is slowly gaining momentum.

Even the more internationalist regional leaders like Macky Sall, Senegal’s president, have recently suggested that he wants to overhaul financial relations with the West.

The president gave a blistering speech earlier this month at a United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (Uncea) meeting in Dakar where he criticized the IMF for not allocating a fair portion of special drawing rights (SDRs) to the continent during the pandemic.

Africa has received only $33 billion of the $650 billion in emergency and unconditional funding issued by the IMF during covid-19, with much larger sums being allocated to developed economies like the US, Japan, China, and Germany.

“Explaining underdevelopment in Africa is very simple. The rules set up by international institutions have put us in a straitjacket. The rules are unfair, outdated, and need to be disputed,” he told delegates.

“It is time for Africa to speak out. The voices should not just be those of leaders but of finance ministers and others affected by a system that works against the continent.”

The growing dissatisfaction with Bretton Woods institutions adds to the feeling that the West has deliberately short-changed Africa in terms of access to vaccines.

Western drugmakers continue to block African manufacturing plants from producing life saving vaccines due to patent issues and vaccine donations to the continent have fallen well short of the mark.

This may have [sic] led to an increase in anti-Western sentiment in other regions outside Francophone west Africa.

Jeffrey Smith, founding director of Vanguard Africa, a non-profit [...], said that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has increased anti-Western sentiment in Africa.

Russian flags have been flown in rallies everywhere from Ethiopia to South Africa as many Africans believe that the West’s condemnation of the invasion is hypocritical in the context of Libya, Iraq, and Afghanistan. [...]

Nicolas Cheeseman, professor of democracy at the University of Birmingham, said that populist policies are on the rise in other parts of Africa but not to the same extent as the Sahel.

“Figures such as William Ruto in Kenya and Julius Malema in South Africa are using populism as a way to try and gain power, but at the minute it seems to be more of a tool of the opposition than the government,” he said.

Still, the populist trend in west Africa could be the start of a wider movement in Africa and activists like Séba certainly hope that recent developments reverberate across the continent.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that the divisive figure has established connections with Malema in South Africa to expand the movement to Southern Africa.

Last week, hundreds of protestors from Malema’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party gathered outside the French embassy in Pretoria, holding signs that had expletives against France. .

For a country which is not linked to French colonization, this could be a warning sign that events in the Sahel may eventually morph into something much more significant in Africa.

6 Jun 22

[composerlost]

MASSIVE ndr/v3 spoilers under the cut so please Do Not if you havent played the game i just really want to yell about it

so i actually finished the game awhile ago but im workin on a thing right now and all the feelings are coming back all of a sudden long story short, i have to admit i was really wrong about it in general though i still have some complaints i had kinda dreaded playing it because it seemed like it was gonna go the route of most sequels to complicated plot games where it just mega oversteps every boundary of decency trying to twist itself in knots for the sake of being unpredictable to the audience. ive been through that scenario too many times and it hurts like nothing else. my fear was a little bit assuaged by the fact that besides the kinda cheaty ending, sdr/2 was an incredible sequel, though it is worth noting i on general principle dont really like the psuedo-retcon increasing influence of jun/ko and the way that the mostly ambiguous ending of the original d/r has been usurped over time. but for ndr/v3 my fear was also amplified by the excessively differential title of the game and the absolute stress my friend put on the “new” in said title. it just smelled like bullshit so i kinda put off playing it for awhile. (that and the game is just Expensive and never goes on sale, thanks spike chun/soft) anyway finally felt ready to play it and ended up playing it with the aforementioned [d/r fanatic] friend. i was bracing myself the entire god damn time and as i started catching wind of what the ultimate twist might be, i still wasnt sure how to feel about it but when i finally got to it, i actually loved it. like way more than i thought would be possible. my initial thought had been “this is some kind of actual tv show, not the forced broadcasting of the first game”, but i of course didnt know about the participants wanting to be a part of it, or of their personalities and existences being erased and replaced with something else so that they in effect become fictional characters. the whole thing was fully in the spirit of d/r, taking a fairly classic death game concept but changing it so it was just different enough without being too much, and just macabre enough that i absolutely fell in love with the concept of course i dont like the retconning of d/r and sdr/2 as now originally being shows like this (i also dont know why they didnt just say the the d/r series started off as fictional video games and eventually branched out into live tv but i digress). seems like most of the fandom agrees with that anyway, since it’s largely considered an alternate universe, as is sorta hinted in the title im also not a big fan of how they tried to wrap it all up by saying believing in hope would bring an end to the game. like this is the 53rd season you think this hasnt happened before? you didnt stop shit anyway, just the idea that the sort of world that would exonerate a show like that could wholeheartedly exist. and the idea that all these people we fell in love with wanted to be a part of it and chose to let themselves be overwritten in the name of despair. and just. everything about the premise is just so god damn interesting. it’s infinitely more interesting than jun/kos supposed world of despair. i find myself wanting to play the game again just to experience it all knowing everything. however its a bit early to be doing that and i know within a short(ish) amount of time we’ll be playing it again with another friend of mine, so ill wait until then. just. god. the ending of ndr/v3 packs the kind of punch that the other two games, great as they are, just couldnt achieve. and just the fact that by and large all three games are really solid is incredible too. im still scared to watch the animes because who knows what the hell is going on over there but damn. just damn.

[skyfire85]

Pz. Spah 1124 Luna Ganz

Facing attack from the IMA’s SAFS-based Fireball and Prowler suits, the SDR requested space-capable upgrades of their own PKA-based designs. While this retooling was being accomplished, a stop-gap was requested, with the further request that it be based on existing parts as much as practicable. Bomvol Zionel responded with the Luna Ganz, essentially the main body and legs of a Krote merged with the sensor dome from a Neuspotter. The Krote’s ICE was swapped for a high-capacity battery system, and a high-mobility thruster system was also added. This Ganz is in the later camouflage of dark gray over camouflage gray, and wears the markings of the 71st Reconnaissance Squadron, 2nd Platoon, and was known as the “Dancing Crow”. This label was applied after photos showed the units standing with one legs raised , and unit patches were soon painted on the Ganz.

This is Wave’s kit, but is mostly based on Nitto’s earlier Neuspotter and Krote kits, so Nitto’s usual mix of plastic, springs and brass rods are present. The central “power unit” is new, and bridges the two older kits. Also included are armor panels for the legs from the Kuster, an evolution of the Krote. Construction was fairly straight-forward, and no issues came up. The unit is painted in Gunship gray over Camouflage gray, with the tanks painted in steel, the engine bells in burnt iron weathered with red and blue hot metal and soot, and various parts in titanium, steel, aluminum and black. I heavily weathered the model with gray stain after applying decals, as well as adding silver paint-chips. The decals are from the kit, except for the unit number. I hit upon using QR Codes in place of numbers (because why would an AI need Arabic numbers?). I found a code creator online, then saved the image, resized to fit the Ganz and printed off on decal paper. The base is an artists’ wood panel, covered with bentonite clay and small rocks. I printed off a Lunar panorama from an Apollo mission on three pages and attached them to the base, providing a backdrop.

[cheshiie]

With our abstract composition projects for the first semester done, I had the time to sit down and look at my work properly, and I have to say, I’m so proud of it!

I completely could have made the lines on the first two topics thicker, but looking at it completed, I don’t want to nitpick much. I love how it turned out, I love the idea behind it, the subtle connection all the topics share, just… ♥

I can’t say it was easy, mostly because I made it difficult myself, being the special procrastinator I am, I finished 4 of parts of all 12 the night before, night in this case representing the cute nap I took in-between 2 and 4 am after which I spent the rest of the time until 10 am painting and setting the board together.

dav

dav

dav

Even though I was completely sleep deprived and overbearingly tired, it was such a relaxing and enjoyable process. It was also absolutely worth it!

What I loved most about the entire process was how everyone’s projects turned out so completely different! The first time our work atelier brought all their completed pieces together felt like such a stunning moment! Despite sharing the exact same task, the results were so diverse and breathtaking! The most interesting part about that little evaluation was how all the shapes and lines somehow represented each of us perfectly, like you could look at the project, then take a look at the person behind it and it was almost like you could “see” the connection between the two.

For some reason, however, it seemed to be a really common case for everyone to dislike their own work. Now, when it came to others, they were so incredibly supportive, but then you’d mention theirs and they would say it’s terrible. I’m only using “they” because I was honestly satisfied with my work.

I won’t upload anybody else’s finished works here for obvious reasons, but I have to tell you, each and every project was magnificent!

Also, spending time together was priceless!

dav

sdr

dav

dav

dav

I’ll allow myself to indulge in talking about how much I love my colleagues again and say that the time we spent studying, laughing and helping each other out is some of the best quality time I’ve had in years. I’m so thankful for everything this university is right now!

Well, now back to studying for the upcoming Wednesday exam, with me luck!

Lots of love, until next time ♥

First project for 2019 With our abstract composition projects for the first semester done, I had the time to sit down and look at my work properly, and I have to say, I'm so proud of it!

[jaysonhundley9-blog]

Instructions How To Convert The File FLAC To CDA

The best way to convert CDA to FLAC on-line with CDA to FLAC Converter ? Convert and burn MP3 and extra audio recordsdata to CDA tracks of an Audio CD. I make the most of an MP3 player as soon as I jog, and have saved a complete lot of music recordsdata on it that I've ripped from my CD collection. CAF audio format is compatible only with Mac OS X 10.four and better; Mac OS X 10.3 desires QuickTime 7 to be put in. Library mode is more healthy in the sense which you could choose precisely which tracks you wish to rip as a substitute of ripping your entire CD. To FLAC Converter can encode the limitless variety of media files and audio-transcoder.com folders. Just add your audio and video for conversion. The appliance will hold folders' construction, original tags and file names for all output MP3s. You will be supplied with detailed progress of each file's conversion and notified when encoding of all information is finished.

is online audio converter software, which facilitates the users to transform various kinds of audio files to totally different file codecs without cost. Essentially the most handy aspect of this software program is that you should use it with out downloading and putting in as it's a web-based software. All that you must do is importing the content material, choosing the format for enter and output and getting your file converted. And earlier than anyone tells me that various players get their data from an internet database, which I do know happens, I must add that the music I am currently recording is just not on any database (that I discovered) or prone to be. In any case, I would like the knowledge on the disk in case I ever corrupt or in any other case lose the MM or other index file. And that's primarily why I think I wantflac - it's supposed to carry that info, sdr free cda to flac converter download from what I've read. CueRipper is included within the Cuetools download. Cuetools is a robust little toolbox with IMO a fairly confused UI. I used cuetools to transform my 1Tb collection of Apes to Flac while verifying the rips (and correcting some), tagging, integrating Cuesheets, integrating logs, and so on - all unattended (okay, I did have to put in writing a batch file to do some work >>;->> ). Recently, a person despatched us a 44-bytescda file that would not be played, and asked for assist for a way can he convert CDA to MP3. In reality, CDA stands for Compact Disc Audio track, CDA is not an audio format. It is a file extension for a CD Audio shortcut file format, which does not include any audio information, however as a substitute tell the place on the disc each track starts and stops. So regardless of the size of the music CD, we at all times see that Observe##.cda" information are 44 bytes. These CDA recordsdata can't be played on a computer with out the CD. Hence, it is impossible to transform CDA to MP3 online. That is the rationale why I say that so-called CDA to MP3 on-line converter is a falsehood. Onerous drive sizes have grown over the previous half dozen years, so we now have 750GB and 1TB drives the place we used to have 120GB or 150GB drives. This implies the additional measurement of FLAC information - which will be roughly half the scale of the original WAV files - is much less of an issue. For comparison, a 24-bit FLAC version of Pink Floyd's Darkish Aspect of the Moon (1973) takes up 239MB whereas my 320kbps MP3 model takes up 71MB.Music on a CD is stored in an uncompressed format. Because of this whereas the sound high quality of a CD may be very high, a considerable amount of storage space is required for only some tracks. A 700MB CD can store solely eighty minutes of uncompressed music, and copying uncompressed music to your pc's hard drive will take up a great deal of storage capability.The hard drive based mostly Traditional IPod is still offered. The Basic IPod is, not unexpectedly, smaller and technologically superior to the unique, including a proprietary Apple lossless format. It "holds" 260 GB. Your strawman has four GB. Nearly nobody makes a decent MP3 participant with solely four GB. In any event, the entire stable-state ones manufactured reputable firms go up to 64 GB. All of those players assist FLAC, either natively or with an app.Changing or "ripping" an audio CD right into a digital file is a time-consuming process, and there are at the least two wise choices. The primary is to make a perfect copy utilizing a lossless system akin to FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec). The second is to make a replica that's so good that you'll never be capable to hear the difference. I selected the second possibility, and encoded tracks in 320kbps MP3.

[ninetyfourmag-blog]

Orkney has always been a popular destination for those who have special ties to the island, however, in recent years many more people are discovering its charm and it has became quite a popular visit for cruise ships and holiday makers.

If you’re not bothered by throw of the dice weather then I would really recommend a visit. If anything, it makes you appreciate when you get a beautiful dry day on the island. Here’s 10 things you can do/see (most of them outside, sorry) if you visit the Orkney Islands.

1. Skara Brae

image by: Historic Scotland

image by: Kieran Baxter

Located on the Bay of Skaill, Skara Brae is a Neolithic settlement made up of 8 clustered houses. The story I’m told whenever I go is that it was rediscovered after a storm revealed the outline of the houses that had been covered by sand and grass – often called the “Scottish Pompeii” due to how well preserved it was. I’m going to bore you with one of those stories of “when I was young” (even though I’m technically still young) but many years ago, you could adventure through the old settlement of Skara Brae, use tools in their kitchens and walk through the houses where the families would have lived. This obviously had to stop for preservation reasons and the amount of people that now visit the site but still well worth the visit even just for the views over the Bay of Skaill.

2. The Italian Chapel

image by: Gregory Kingsley

The Italian Chapel at Lamb Holm was built by Italian prisoners of war during World War II after being given permission to build a place of worship. It is held in high regard by island residents and visitors due to the incredible level of artistry and workmanship. Once a free site to visit, it now costs £3 to go inside the chapel. This is to help towards the upkeep and maintenance needed and also because someone stole three of the Station of the Cross in 2014 but lets not get into that. Replacement Plaques were however carved in Moena, Italy and replaced those in the chapel.

3. The Churchill Barriers

image by: Orkney Uncovered

One of my favourite things in Orkney are the Churchill Barriers. There’s nothing like the rush of being overtaken in the car when crossing the narrow road (this is a joke, please don’t do this to people, speaking from experience here). The Churchill Barriers are 4 causeways that link the mainland to smaller islands. They were built during WWI as a defence for Scapa Flow that then housed the Royal Navy’s Grand Fleet. They’re hella cool and you’ll most likely see a few shipwrecks each side of them.

4. The Ring of Brodgar

sdr

image by: Brian John

Believed to outdate Stonehenge in England, is The Ring of Brodgar. Originally a ring with a diameter of 340 ft and consisting of 60 megaliths, 27 stones remain today ranging from 7 – 15 ft. Also, it’s pronounced Broa(d)yeur not Brogar and is free to visit woooo.

5. Maeshowe

Maeshowe is a chambered cairn that’s history is a little sketchy but it is known that the Vikings entered the mound during the 12th century and have left one of the largest collections of runes anywhere, as well as carvings of a dragon, a serpent and a walrus. It has associations with the winter solstice, the sun shines directly into the passage of Maeshowe and for a few minutes it illuminates the back wall quite dramatically. I’d recommend doing the tour where you crawl through the narrow tunnel and enter into the dome shaped chamber.

6. Happy Valley

image by: Peter Adams

My Nana and Papa knew they man that started Happy Valley and were so excited to hear that his life’s work had been maintained after his passing in 2005. At his house “Bankburn” in Stenness, Edwin Harrold created an area of forest from 1948 to 1990 – which is quite rare in Orkney due to the high winds. If you visit now, it is an incredibly peaceful and magical place that still includes his small cottage house and a stream. Stepping into the forest you feel as though you are in another land. It is well maintained by the community and perfect for small children as there are windchimes, fairies and hidden treasure.

7. The Craft Trail

The Craft Trail 2018 was one of my favourite things when we visited this year. So much negativity is generally placed on making a living out of a creative discipline but in Orkney, it thrives. My favourite places we visited on the craft tail were Sheila Fleets new visitor centre in Tankerness that consists of a shop and café and her sisters tapestry shop. You may even be lucky enough to bump into the wonderful lady herself there. After browsing her incredible new collection and hearing about her inspiration, she recommended we visit her sisters tapestry workshop which is also incredible – clearly such a talented family!

8. Live Music at The Reel

image by: Frank Peter

Nights in Orkney are made for live music at The Reel in Kirkwall created by internationally renowned Wrigley Sisters. There’s a café, bar and a music school. They host plenty of music events such as their Saturday night sessions that allow anyone with an instrument to join in. Even if you aren’t musically inclined, it’s well worth a visit to experience the atmosphere.

9. Go puffin spotting at the Brough of Birsay

image by: Phil Turner

If you fancy trying to spot some puffins, the Brough of Birsay is the place you need to go. Only accessible at low tide via a causeway, it is quite a walk up the exposed hill but so worth it! Just don’t go leaning to far over the edge for a good view. May and June are the only months you really see them here though!

10. The Broch of Gurness

Similar to Skara Brae is the Broch of Gurness except here you can really get in about the old Iron Age settlement. A broch is a tall circular tower and there’s estimated to be around 500 in northern Scotland however this one also had a broch village and has been excavated so you really do get a real insight to the layout of the settlement. Fun fact, according to my family, there was no fence back in the day but after my dad fell over the edge on to the sand below, they had to put one in – oops.

      10 Things to see in Orkney, Scotland (mostly outside, sorry!) Orkney has always been a popular destination for those who have special ties to the island, however, in recent years many more people are discovering its charm and it has became quite a popular visit for cruise ships and holiday makers.

[swradiogram]

Shortwave Radiogram, 17-19 December 2021: Digital modes transported by hydrogen airships

I hope you are enjoying the holiday season. Eight of our nine images this weekend will feature the lights of the season, in various parts of the world. It is now the time of year that our Sunday 0800-0830 UTC broadcast can be received in parts of Europe. This is because of helpful darkness over the north Atlantic. Reception seems to be better on 5850 than on 7730 kHz. The problem is a strong data (likely Stanag) signal, which last weekend was centered just below 5850 kHz. Our MFSK32 and even the MFSK64 on the upper sideband of 5850 managed to get by the data, for mostly successful decoding. The results below are via an SDR in Iceland ...

If you are in Europe, try 5850 and 7730 kHz Sundays at 0800-0830 UTC. For other results from last week, including more multipath images and reception from a cruise ship off the coast of Antarctica, follow @SWRadiogram on Twitter, or visit twitter.com/swradiogram. A video of last weekend's Shortwave Radiogram (program 234, Friday 1300 UTC) is provided by Scott in Ontario. The audio archive is maintained by Mark in the UK. Analysis is prepared by Roger in Germany. Here is the lineup for Shortwave Radiogram, program 235, 17-19 December 2021, in MFSK modes as noted:   1:43  MFSK32: Program preview   2:52  Warming Earth shrinks safe times for outdoor work   8:04  MFSK64: Hydrogen airships for cargo transport?* 14:26  This week's (holiday) images* 28:31  MFSK32: Closing announcements * with image(s) Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net And visit http://swradiogram.net Twitter: @SWRadiogram or https://twitter.com/swradiogram (visit during the weekend to see listeners' results) Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/567099476753304 Shortwave Radiogram Gateway Wiki https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Shortwave_Radiogram_Gateway

Shortwave Radiogram Transmission Schedule

| UTC Day  | UTC Time      | Frequency        | Transmitter       | |----------|---------------|------------------|-------------------| | Friday   | 0030-0100 UTC | 9265 kHz         | WINB Pennsylvania | | Friday   | 1300-1330 UTC | 15770 kHz        | WRMI Florida      | | Friday   | 1500-1530 UTC | 15750 kHz DRM    | WINB Pennsylvania | | Saturday | 0330-0400 UTC | 9265 kHz         | WINB Pennsylvania | | Saturday | 1330-1400 UTC | 15770 kHz        | WRMI Florida      | | Sunday   | 0800-0830 UTC | 5850 and 7730 kHz| WRMI Florida      | | Sunday   | 2330-2400 UTC | 7780 kHz         | WRMI Florida      |

                                                                                                                                 The Mighty KBC transmits to North America Sundays at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday 7-9 pm EST) on 5960 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK is at about 0130 UTC.  Reports to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com . See also http://www.kbcradio.eu/ and https://www.facebook.com/TheMightyKbc/. “This is a Music Show” Most of the show is a music show, but the host transmits some MFSK-64 text and image near the end of the broadcast.  It’s transmitted on WRMI, Thursdays at 0200-0300 UTC on 5850 kHz (Wednesday evening in the Americas). Also look for a waterfall ID at the beginning of the show. thisisamusicshow@gmail.com   www.twitter.com/ThisIsAMusicSho/    @ThisIsAMusicSho   https://thisisamusicshow.com New York and Pennsylvania NBEMS nets. Most weekends, as KD9XB, I check in to the New York NBEMS (Narrow Band Emergency Messaging Software) net Saturday at 1200 UTC on 3584 kHz USB, and the Pennsylvania NBEMS net Sunday at 1230 UTC on 3583 kHz USB. Check-ins are usually in Thor 22, and messages are in MFSK32. Messages generally use the Flmsg add-on to Fldigi. If you are a radio amateur in eastern North America, feel free to check in. Outside the region, use an SDR in the eastern USA to tune in and decode. You do not need Flmsg to check in, and most of the messages can be read without Flmsg. If you can decode the net, send me an email to radiogram@verizon.net , or tweet to @SWRadiogram, and I will let them know you are tuned in. USEast NBEMS Net: Please also note the USEast NBEMS Net, Thursdays 0000 UTC (Wednesdays 7 pm EST) on 3536 kHz USB. Hangar77 in South Mississippi received these images 11 December at 0330-0400 UTC from WINB Pennsylvania ......

[andmaybegayer]

picked up a faint late night weather broadcast in Afrikaans and all the usual local security chatter. The radio clubs have dates for weekly broadcasts (mostly Mondays, Fridays and Sundays) and I think I'm in range of a repeater but half the repeater info is years out of date. I'll have to poke around and hope. I can always break out the SDR to check the waterfalls.

Ham is extremely small around here, and I don't have very good range because I live in a hole at the foot of a hill, and the stock antenna on the UV-5R isn't bad but it's really made for local communication. I could probably dramatically improve my range by walking like two hundred meters up the road.

🍔📻

Got a UV-5R HT. Yes they're not very good. There were no good quality HT's (or even rack units) on the used market for less than triple this price. They're fine.

I'm not licensed to transmit yet but no one can tell if you're listening, no matter what OFCOM says, so as long as I keep my finger off the PTT button I won't get a visit from the ICASA cops. This doesn't dramatically expand my listening capabilities beyond what my little SDR setup can do but having the option to transmit is good and this is a far more convenient form factor. I will continue to use radio to eavesdrop on local private security companies.

It's also a plain old commercial FM radio receiver of which I haven't had a portable one that wasn't my phone for years now.

[dipulb3]

Samsung Q80T series (2020) review: High-end design, excellent picture, approachable price

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/samsung-q80t-series-2020-review-high-end-design-excellent-picture-approachable-price/

Samsung Q80T series (2020) review: High-end design, excellent picture, approachable price

In 2020, Samsung’s TV lineup seems skewed more than ever toward higher-end models: There are three series with 8K resolution, a bunch of lifestyle models such as The Frame, The Sero and even a crazy-expensive outdoor television called The Terrace. Among relatively “normal” TVs, the Q80T stands out. It’s not cheap, but it is the least expensive Samsung QLED TV to feature full-array local dimming, which gives it an excellent picture.

Like

Excellent overall image quality

Superior styling

Wide range of sizes

Numerous features, voice options

Don’t Like

More expensive than competing TVs with similar picture quality

The Q80T’s big brother, the Q90T, also has FALD and I expect it to perform even better, but once again there’s an issue with price. In the 55- and 65-inch sizes the Q90T costs basically the same as my favorite high-end TV for 2020, the OLED-powered LG CX, and in my experience the OLED will have a better picture overall. That puts the Q80T in roughly the same price-to-performance sweet spot as the Sony X900H, the Vizio P-Series and TCL 6-Series.

I compared all four in my basement TV lab side-by-side and the Samsung Q80T was indeed excellent, but despite costing more than the other three, it didn’t put out a better picture. Instead its strength lies in design, with sleeker looks, an excellent remote and, yes, that Samsung nameplate. Like the others it’s also well-suited to pair with an Xbox Series X or PS5 thanks to variable refresh rate capability and 4K/120Hz input. 

If you have your heart set on a Samsung, you want a great picture and you don’t have money to burn, the Q80T is pretty sweet. But if you’re brand-agnostic, the Vizio and TCL are both better values.

Sleekness from the stand up

When you pay a little extra for a Samsung you expect superior design, and the Q80T delivers. The most obvious upgrade is the stand: Samsung uses a central pedestal, which to my eye looks a lot sleeker than the two separate legs to either side that most new TVs employ. The base is a single slab of metal, flush against the tabletop. An angled chunk of metal and plastic supports the panel, creating a nice floaty effect.

Black with a minimal frame around the image, the Q80T also has a textured backside and a cable management system that lets you channel power and HDMI from their ports through the stand, making for a cleaner look.

David Katzmaier/CNET

Samsung’s clicker is also among my favorites, with minimal buttons and just the right feel in-hand. Channel and volume keys click up and down, Ambient mode gets its own button as does the mic for voice, and even the Netflix and Amazon app shortcut keys are nicer than on other remotes: They lack garish colors and instead just match the rest of the wand.

Ambient mode is designed to show stuff on the screen when you’re not watching TV. It’s a cool feature if you don’t like the big black rectangle of an inert TV, and can display your photos, designer art, the weather, headlines and even adjust backgrounds to match your wall.

David Katzmaier/CNET

Alexa and Google join Bixby

Samsung’s homebrew Bixby voice assistant is built into the Q80T, as you’d expect, but new for 2020 you can choose the overwhelmingly more-popular Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant instead. You can select between the three in the menus and whichever one you choose will be available when you press the mic button on the clicker. 

Alternately you can set the remote’s mic to listen for the “Alexa” or “Hey, Google” wake words, allowing you to issue commands hands-free (it worked well as long as I stayed relatively close to the remote). And like most TVs you can also pair the Q80T with separate Alexa or Google speakers. 

David Katzmaier/CNET

Beyond voice, Samsung’s on-screen smart TV system is excellent, with quick responses and plenty of apps, and I’d take it over LG or Vizio’s systems. I still like Roku and Android TV (found on Sony TVs) better overall, however, because they have even more apps. Just like most TVs now (including Roku), Samsung has the Apple TV app and works with Apple’s AirPlay system.

Full-fledged features and HDMI connectivity

Full-array local dimming sets the Q80T apart from cheaper Samsung TVs. This technology, which improves LCD image quality significantly in our experience, boosts black levels and contrast by making certain areas of the picture dimmer or brighter in reaction to what’s on the screen. The step-up Q90T and the company’s 8K models have more dimming zones and brighter images than the Q80T, but Samsung doesn’t say exactly how many zones each has. 

Key features

Display technology LED LCD LED backlight Full array with local dimming Resolution 4K HDR compatible HDR10, HDR10+ Smart TV Tizen Remote Standard voice

Like all of Samsung QLED TVs, as well as most higher-end TVs from Vizio and TCL, the Q80T’s LCD panel is augmented by a layer of quantum dots — microscopic nanocrystals that glow a specific wavelength (i.e. color) when given energy. The effect is better brightness and color compared to non-QD-equipped TVs. The Q80T uses a true 120Hz panel, which improves the TVs’ motion performance, but as usual the “Motion Rate 240” specification is made up (note that the 49- and 50-inch sizes are 60Hz/MR 120).

The set supports high dynamic range content in the HDR10 and the HDR10 Plus formats. It lacks the Dolby Vision HDR support found on most competitors’ HDR TVs. I’ve seen no evidence that one HDR format is inherently “better” than the other, so I definitely don’t consider lack of Dolby Vision a deal-breaker on this TV — instead it’s just one more factor to consider.

Gaming features are one of the Q80T’s strong points. It’s compatible with variable refresh rate, as well as the FreeSync and G-synch VRR formats, available from devices including select PCs, the Xbox Series X and PS5, although the latter doesn’t support VRR yet. The Q80T also accepts 4K/120Hz input on HDMI 4, which is conveniently marked with a little game controller icon. The TV supports Auto Game Mode too, which lets it automatically switch to game mode to reduce input lag when it detects you’re playing a game. (Note that the 49- and 50-inch sizes lack 4K/120Hz input and VRR.)

David Katzmaier/CNET

4x HDMI inputs

2x USB ports

Ethernet (LAN) port

Optical digital audio output

RF (antenna) input

Remote (RS-232) port (EX-LINK)

This list is mostly solid, unless you happen to own a legacy device that requires analog video (component or composite) or audio. The Q80T is one of the few TVs that doesn’t at least offer one analog input, audio or video.

Picture quality comparisons

Click the image above for picture settings and HDR notes.

David Katzmaier/CNET

The Q80T is an excellent performer overall, with good local dimming and contrast, excellent brightness, color and video processing. It fell short of the black levels and brightness of some less-expensive TVs, such as the Vizio P-Series and TCL 6 series, especially with HDR material, but showed less blooming and a slightly cleaner image, earning the same score of 8 (Excellent) in this category. I preferred the Vizio and TCL overall for image quality and liked the Sony X900H a bit less, but all four occupy the same general plane.

Click the image above to see the picture settings used in the review and to read more about how this TV’s picture controls worked during calibration.

Dim lighting: I started with the excellent-looking Blu-ray of Parasite. In brighter scenes the Samsung generally matched the image quality of the others — all four were excellent overall. Differences emerged in darker scenes, for example during Park Dong-ik’s ride in the back of the car in Chapter 4. The TCL and the Vizio both showed darker, more realistic “black” in the shadows and letterbox bars, with less bleed from bright areas into dark, compared to the Sony and Samsung. The latter two were close, but the Samsung has a slight edge over the Sony. The differences weren’t drastic — all four TVs have very good black levels and contrast — but still visible side-by-side.

Here’s where I mention an unusual thing Samsung did with settings, which I liked. The Brightness control handles backlight level but there’s an additional Shadow Detail slider under Gamma (where it should be) that controls exactly that (and does a lot of the same work as a standard Brightness/black level setting). According to my measurements it does what it claims: boosts brightness at low levels (5% to 20%) as you creep up. The default “0” setting is the most accurate but cranking it up did reveal more, yes, details like the car seat cushions and floor of Parks car became more visible.

Bright lighting: These days TVs just seem to be getting brighter but the Q80T is an exception, measuring dimmer than many TVs at its level including the TCL, Vizio P and Sony, and even slightly dimmer than the Q70 from 2019. It’s still bright enough for just about any room, however, and has plenty of punch to make HDR look impactful.

Light output in nits

TV Brightest (SDR) Accurate color (SDR) Brightest (HDR) Accurate color (HDR) Hisense H9G 1,239 1,238 1,751 1,498 TCL 65R635 1,114 792 1,292 1,102 Sony XBR-65X900H 841 673 989 795 Vizio P65Q9-H1 768 629 1,305 1,084 Hisense 65R8F 717 717 770 770 Samsung QN65Q80T 664 503 1,243 672 Vizio M65Q7-H1 595 424 588 480 LG OLED65CX 377 290 690 634

Don’t let the high score in Dynamic fool you. Aside from being woefully inaccurate, it fluctuated quite a bit, starting out at over 1,200 nits but falling almost immediately to around 300. Most other TVs don’t show such dramatic fall-off, and none of the Q80T’s other modes did either. 

For the Accurate measurements in SDR I used the Natural picture mode in combination with the Warm color temperature setting (the default temperature for Natural is quite blue). I prefer Vizio and TCL’s approach of a dedicated, accurate bright-room picture mode.

Unlike previous Samsung TVs I’ve tested the Q80T didn’t excel at handling ambient light. In a bright room all of the TVs in my lineup were better at reducing the brightness of reflections to preserve the fidelity of the image. The difference wasn’t massive but definitely noticeable in dark areas of program material.

Color accuracy: The Samsung’s Filmmaker Mode and Movie modes are both accurate before calibration but I prefer the former because it disables most video processing by default (see below). After calibration, as expected, it was excellent. During Parasite, colors like the green lettuce and red kimchi in the cafeteria in Chapter 4, as well as the skin tones of the family as they eat, looked natural and well-balanced. Then again so did the other displays — it was difficult to see any real color differences even side-by-side with non-HDR colors.

Video processing: As usual the Samsung aced my tests in this category, delivering true 1080p/24 film cadence with film-based sources and plenty of motion resolution (1,000 lines) with video-based sources. The TV achieved both results with a Picture Clarity setting of Custom with Blur Reduction at 10 and Judder Reduction at 0, so if I had this TV I’d “set it and forget it” right there. Note that Filmmaker Mode’s default setting is to turn Picture Clarity off, which results in less motion resolution, but you can adjust it to taste.

You can also add more smoothing or soap opera effect by increasing Judder Reduction or choosing Auto instead of Custom. Meanwhile the LED Clear Motion option makes motion even sharper with the help of black frame insertion, at the expense of flicker and a dimmer image.

Samsung continues its tradition of excellent input lag in game mode with a score just over 14 milliseconds with both 1080p and 4K HDR sources.

Uniformity: With demanding, full-field test patterns the Q80T’s screen was quite uniform, with more-even lighting from edge to edge than the Vizio, whose sides looked slightly dark, and slightly less-even lighting than the TCL. With program material I saw the same minor issue on the Vizio while the others were very similar (note that uniformity can vary from sample to sample). From off-angle the Samsung was the best LCD TV I’ve tested, maintaining color fidelity, brightness and contrast better than the others. 

HDR and 4K video: With high dynamic range sources the differences between the four TVs became more apparent, and the Vizio and TCL looked slightly better than the Sony and the Samsung overall. The Q80T’s highlights appeared a bit dimmer than the others, including the Sony, while its black levels were lighter and less realistic than the TCL and Vizio, it’s contrast did beat the Sony’s.

Watching the Spears and Munsil HDR benchmark’s test montage, the ferris wheel at night (4:51) was a good example, with a slightly gray-blue cast to the sky, and less pop in the lights on the Q80T. It still looked great, with plenty of punch and contrast I expect from HDR, but next to the TCL and Vizio it didn’t convey quite the same sense of realism — although it looked better overall then the Sony.

Brighter scenes, like the closeups of flowers and insects (3:26), showed less of a difference but the Samsung still appeared very slightly dimmer than the TCL and Vizio, an impression backed up by spot measurements of my light meter. Colors were crisp and vibrant, however, and the orange of the monarch butterfly for example appeared a bit deeper and more saturated than the TCL, if not quite as powerful as the Vizio.  

The Samsung and Sony had one advantage during the montage however: they were slightly cleaner than the TCL and Vizio in the first fade up from black to a bright sky. The latter two showed faint, subtle banding in the sky as the image brightened, while the two “S” TVs didn’t. 

Another advantage: The Q80T was the best among the three at controlling blooming, so stray illumination wasn’t an issue even in difficult mixed bright-and-dark scenes. One major reason, I suspect, was its less-aggressive brightness compared to the more blooming-prone TCL and Vizio.

Switching over to Parasite in HDR, the Samsung’s image held up better than before thanks to its ability to control blooming and maintain black levels (at the expense of brightness). During the dark Chapter 4 car ride, for example, the Q80T’s black levels were darkest and it showed less stray illumination in the passing streetlights. On the other hand those lights and other bright spots were more brilliant on the TCL and Vizio, and both exposed more shadow detail than the Samsung — while the Sony had the best shadow detail and the worst contrast. I still ended up preferring the TCL and Vizio overall, but the Samsung was much closer.

In brighter scenes where blooming is less visible the superior light output of the other TVs shined gave them more characteristic HDR punch, particularly in highlights like the sun as TK approaches the house in Chapter 3. The Samsung still looked brilliant, saturated and impressive, but the TCL and Vizio looked just a notch more-so in my side-by-side comparison.

Geek Box

Test Result Score Black luminance (0%) 0.003 Good Peak white luminance (SDR) 664 Good Avg. gamma (10-100%) 2.22 Good Avg. grayscale error (10-100%) 0.64 Good Dark gray error (30%) 0.90 Good Bright gray error (80%) 1.37 Good Avg. color checker error 2.70 Good Avg. saturation sweeps error 2.01 Good Avg. color error 1.29 Good Red error 1.34 Good Green error 0.59 Good Blue error 1.13 Good Cyan error 1.38 Good Magenta error 1.61 Good Yellow error 1.70 Good 1080p/24 Cadence (IAL) Pass Good Motion resolution (max) 1000 Good Motion resolution (dejudder off) 1000 Good Input lag (Game mode) 20.77 Good HDR10 Black luminance (0%) 0.005 Good Peak white luminance (10% win) 1243 Good Gamut % UHDA/P3 (CIE 1976) 91.85 Average ColorMatch HDR error 5.52 Poor Avg. color checker error 2.65 Good Input lag (Game mode, 4K HDR) 20.37 Good

Samsung QN65Q80T CNET revie… by David Katzmaier

Portrait Displays Calman calibration software was used in this review. 

[kettutitaani]

Plants, flower crown, and lace!

plants: pick a person to stargaze with you and explain why you picked them- I am not sure, probably you because it would turn out mushy but romantic OR one of my Twitter SDR mutuals, because she would make up something to talk about and we'd talk a lot (mostly about SDR probably). lace: when was your last 3am conversation with someone, and who were they to you?- I am not staying that late usually, but when I do, I'm drunk. So last time when I was drunk? Hmm... I remember sharing a cab with a cute girl I saw earlier from Be Queerious-party and we talked about dogs. Drunk conversations are best thing ever. flower crown: when did you last sing to yourself? - Yes, I sang yesterday, it was "you reposted to the wrong neighbourhood"-meme. I nailed it haha

[swradiogram]

Shortwave Radiogram, 18-21 March 2021: Flmsg with Fldigi (what can possibly go wrong?)

The spring time change is now complete in North America (a few states and provinces do not observe daylight time). WINB on 9265 kHz and WRMI 9955 kHz keep programs at the same Eastern times, so Shortwave Radiogram will be one hour earlier by UTC on these frequencies. WRMI on all its other frequencies, and WINB on their DRM frequency, stay with UTC, so Shortwave Radiogram will be one hour later by local time in most of North America on those frequencies (WRMI: 15770, 5850, 7730 and 7780 kHz). See the updated schedule below. Last week's html was mostly successful. See this example. Our experiment with using line breaks <CR><LF>'s at 65 spaces seems to have eliminated the stray code and words with spaces in the middle. A video of last weekend's Shortwave Radiogram (program 195) is provided by Scott in Ontario. The audio archive is maintained by Mark in the UK (who has maintained this audio archive for the past eight years, since the time of VOA Radiogram. Thanks Mark!) Analysis is prepared by Roger in Germany. Flmsg this weekend. Program 196 will be a complex show, with a plain text schedule table and three Flmsg items. The following instructions will be a dense as a college textbook ... Flmsg is an application that accompanies Fldigi. Flmsg is used by amateur radio for mainly for emergency message handling, but we can also make use of it on Shortwave Radiogram. If you do not have Flmsg, you will see be able to see the content in the receive pane.   1) Download Flmsg from http://w1hkj.com/files/flmsg/ 2) To make Fldigi work with Flmsg, in Fldigi: Configure Config Dialog NBEMS interface Under reception of flmsg files: Unselect Transfer direct to executing flmsg Select Open with flmsg Select Open in browser Specify (with path) where the Flmsg is located on your PC 3) In the Flmsg first setup ... "Select Default User Interface" ...    Select Communicator / Expert     Then in Flmsg ...    Config    ARQ interface    Select only Sync modem to fldigi 4) Audio samples are available for Flmsg practice: CSV Blank form Transfer (of html file) 5) Android users can try AndFlmsg ... http://w1hkj.com/files/AndFlmsg/ Here is the lineup for Shortwave Radiogram, program 196, 18-21  March 2021, in MFSK modes as noted:   1:52  MFSK32: Program preview   4:23  Shortwave Radiogram schedule as plain-text table (not Flmsg)  (1)   8:29  Shortwave Radiogram schedule as Flmsg CSV file* (2) 10:32  MFSK64: ISS amateur gear repairs, as Flmsg Blank form* (3) 13:22  Radio galaxy detected, as Flmsg Transfer of html file* (4) 17:02  This week's images (six this week) 28:10  MFSK32: Closing announcements * Uses Flmsg from www.w1hkj.com/files/flmsg/.  If you do not have Flmsg, the content will still be visible in the Fldigi receive pane.  If Fldigi has been configured correctly, Fldigi will open Flmsg to the correct form. In some cases, a new window of your web browser will also open.  After any of the Flmsg transmissions, if you get a checksum error message, click Yes when prompted whether to ignore errors. (1) For the table to display correctly, use a monospace font (all letters are the same width) such as Courier, Courier New, Consolas, Lucida Console, Source Code Pro, or Terminal. If the table is out of alignment because you have a proportional-spaced font, copy the table to a text editor or word processor with a monospace font selected. (2) When the Flmsg CSV form appears, click View CSV. You can also export the CSV file to your computer, then open the CSV file using your spreadsheet program. If you do not have Flmsg, paste the CSV text to a text editor and save it as a .csv file. (3) If Fldigi has been configured correctly, the Flmsg blank form and a new window of your web browser will open. If your default browser is not open, it will be opened. If you do not have Flmsg, the story will appear in your receive pane as plain text. (4) Upon completion of the transmission, the name of the html file will appear in the Flmsg Tranfer form. Click on the file name, then click Open. If you do not have Flmsg, copy the received html text from, and including, <!DOCTYPE html> to, and including,  </html> to a text editor, save it as an .html file, and open the .html file in a web browser. Thanks to Benn Kobb AK4AV who is helping with the HTML experiments. Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net And visit http://swradiogram.net Twitter: @SWRadiogram or https://twitter.com/swradiogram (visit during the weekend to see listeners' results) Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/567099476753304 Shortwave Radiogram Gateway Wiki https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Shortwave_Radiogram_Gateway

Shortwave Radiogram Transmission Schedule

| UTC Day  | UTC Time      | Frequency        | Transmitter       | |----------|---------------|------------------|-------------------| | Thursday | 2330-2400 UTC | 9265 kHz         | WINB Pennsylvania | | Friday   | 1300-1330 UTC | 15770 kHz        | WRMI Florida      | | Friday   | 1500-1530 UTC | 13655 kHz DRM    | WINB Pennsylvania | | Saturday | 0000-0o30 UTC | 9955 kHz         | WRMI Florida      | | Saturday | 0230-0300 UTC | 9265 kHz         | WINB Pennsylvania | | Saturday | 1330-1400 UTC | 15770 kHz        | WRMI Florida      | | Sunday   | 0800-0830 UTC | 5850 and 7730 kHz| WRMI Florida      | | Sunday   | 2330-2400 UTC | 7780 kHz         | WRMI Florida      |

The Mighty KBC transmits to North America Sundays at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday 8-10 pm EDT) on 5960 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK is at about 0130 UTC.  Reports to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com . See also http://www.kbcradio.eu/ and https://www.facebook.com/TheMightyKbc/. “This is a Music Show” Most of the show is a music show, but the host transmits some MFSK text and image near the end of the broadcast. It’s transmitted on WRMI, Thursdays at 0200-0300 UTC on 5850 kHz (Wednesday evening in the Americas) and a new time also on WRMI, Wednesdays at 2100-2200 UTC on 7780 kHz (aimed towards Europe) . Also look for a waterfall ID at the beginning of the show. thisisamusicshow@gmail.com .  www.twitter.com/ThisIsAMusicSho/ @ThisIsAMusicSho New York and Pennsylvania NBEMS nets. Most weekends, as KD9XB, I check in to the New York NBEMS (Narrow Band Emergency Messaging Software) net Saturday at 1200 UTC on 3584 kHz USB, and the Pennsylvania NBEMS net Sunday at 1130 UTC on 3583 kHz USB. Check-ins are usually in Thor 22, and messages are in MFSK32. Messages generally use the Flmsg add-on to Fldigi. If you are a radio amateur in eastern North America, feel free to check in. Outside the region, use an SDR in the eastern USA to tune in and decode. You do not need Flmsg to check in, and most of the messages can be read without Flmsg. If you can decode the net, send me an email to radiogram@verizon.net , or tweet to @SWRadiogram, and I will let them know you are tuned in. USEast NBEMS Net: Please also note the USEast NBEMS Net, Wednesdays 2300 UTC (7 pm EDT) on 3536 kHz USB.

Orkun in Turkey received these images and web page 12 March 2021, 1300-1330 UTC, 15770 kHz from WRMI Florida. ...